February 6, 2023 Turkey-Syria earthquake news

Shaking from the deadly powerful earthquake that hit southern Turkey could be felt up as far away as Israel.

People in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv reported feeling the shaking early Monday morning and Israeli police said they had received more than 3,000 such reports.

There have been no reports of injuries or damage so far in Israel. 

Nearly 200 people have been killed and about 1,000 others injured in Turkey and Syria after the 7.8 magnitude quake struck, sending tremors across the region.

CNN meteorologist Brandon Miller said earlier that shaking from the quake could be felt up to 300 kilometers away (186 miles) from the epicenter.

Journalist Eyad Kourdi, who lives in the southern Turkish city of Gaziantep and was staying with his parents when the earthquake struck early Monday, said "it felt like it would never be over."

When the shaking stopped, Kourdi and his parents walked out of their home still wearing their pajamas, he said.

With several inches of snow on the ground, they waited outside in the rain for about 30 minutes before he could go back inside to grab coats and boots.

Harsh weather: A winter storm in the region is exacerbating the disaster, according to CNN meteorologists.

The White Helmets, also known as the Syrian Civil Defense, on Monday declared the northwest of the country as a "disaster area" following the powerful 7.8 magnitude earthquake that hit neighboring Turkey, sending tremors across the region.

The group said hundreds of people have been injured and trapped under rubble and dozens have died, but didn't specify exact numbers.

Much of northwestern Syria, which borders Turkey, is controlled by anti-government forces amid a bloody civil war that began in 2011.

According to Syrian State TV, citing the Ministry of Health, the earthquake Monday has killed at least 111 people and injured 516 others in the Syrian regions of Aleppo, Latakia, Hama and Tartus.

At least 111 people have died and 516 others were injured in Syria after a strong earthquake hit neighboring southern Turkey early Monday, Syrian State TV reported, citing the Ministry of Health.

The deaths were reported in the regions of Aleppo, Latakia, Hama and Tartus. 

The 7.8 magnitude quake is one of the strongest to hit Turkey in more than 100 years and sent tremors across the region that caused buildings to collapse.

Nearly 1,000 search and rescue volunteers have been deployed from Turkey's largest city, Istanbul, to the south of the country following the powerful 7.8 magnitude earthquake that struck early Monday.

At least 118 people were killed in Turkey and Syria after one of the strongest earthquakes to hit Turkey in more than 100 years sent tremors across the region, collapsing buildings and sending residents running into the streets.

Turkey's disaster agency has appealed for help from the international community as it conducts search and rescue operations.

At least 118 people were killed in two countries after one of the strongest earthquakes to hit Turkey in more than 100 years sent tremors across the region, collapsing buildings and sending residents running into the streets.

At least 76 people died and more than 440 were injured in Turkey, according to the country's disaster management agency. In neighboring Syria, at least 42 people died and around 200 more were injured, Syrian state run-news agency SANA reported, citing a Health Ministry official.

In Syria, the deaths were reported in Aleppo, Hama and Latakia, SANA said.

The "White Helmets" group, officially known as the Syria Civil Defense, also said there were dozens of victims and hundreds trapped under the rubble in the opposition-controlled Idlib region.

The quake struck while residents were likely asleep and unprepared for the impact. Video shared on social media shows dozens of collapsed buildings, while frightened residents huddled on the darkened streets amid the chaos.

The deadly powerful earthquake that hit southern Turkey early on Monday could be felt up to 300 kilometers away (186 miles), according to a CNN meteorologist.

Dozens of people have been killed in Turkey and neighboring Syria after the 7.8 quake struck; it's tied as the strongest the country has experienced in more than 100 years of records.

CNN meteorologist Brandon Miller said shaking from the quake could be felt as far away as Lebanon, hundreds of kilometers away.

Turkish officials say at least 76 people were killed. In Syria, at least 42 people have died and 200 others were injured after buildings collapsed, Syria's state-run news agency SANA reported.

"A quake of this magnitude and in this part of the world, the shaking goes on for a long way. As you get closer to that epicenter, the shaking is greater," Miller added.

At least 76 people have been killed in Turkey after one of the strongest earthquakes to hit the country in more than 100 years sent tremors across the region, according to Turkish officials.

The country's Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD) said another 440 people have been injured, with search and rescue efforts ongoing.

The agency has appealed for help from the international community for its search and rescue operation.

The 7.8 magnitude earthquake that struck southern Turkey early Monday is tied as the strongest the country has experienced in more than 100 years of records, according to the United States Geological Survey (USGS).

The USGS said an equally powerful 7.8 magnitude quake that hit eastern Turkey in 1939 resulted in more than 30,000 deaths.

Karl Lang, an assistant professor at Georgia Tech University's School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, told CNN the area hit by the quake Monday is prone to seismic activity.

Earthquakes of this magnitude are rare, with fewer than five occurring per year anywhere in the world, on average. 

"What's really unusual here is that it's a very large earthquake that is also close to the surface," Lang said.

Some context: Turkey is no stranger to strong earthquakes; seven quakes with magnitude 7.0 or greater have struck the country in the past 25 years —  but Monday's is the most powerful. It is also the strongest quake to hit anywhere in the world since an 8.1 magnitude quake struck a remote region near the South Sandwich Islands in the southern Atlantic Ocean in 2021, resulting in no damage.